Programmatic 101: Measure success with a full-funnel approach and the correct KPI

by ownerIQ

Aug 28, 2015

These days a “full-funnel approach” is a term that every brand, agency, and publisher is throwing around to efficiently reach and convert customers – but what are the best ways to measure success? While the industry is moving toward more reliable metrics, there are still some major brands and agencies that are throwing large budgets at initiatives with arbitrary KPIs.

Let’s start from the top of the funnel that serves to engage consumers by introducing a brand and its messaging. This is an important strategy for advertisers that are looking to increase the scale of their brand or product and help overall efficiency in the lower funnel by providing enough volume to identify trends. Ideally, your advertising partners will find and serve an ad to the right customers (the ones most receptive to your brand or messaging) to guide them into the funnel. Although CTR remains the most popular metric, the majority of clicks are accidental or bots, so it’s best to try more meaningful KPIs, such as site views using pixel placement. At ownerIQ, we also recommend a reach campaign against our premium audience to increase awareness.

The purpose of the mid-funnel is to continue to engage the consumer and influence them to favor your brand as they move along the path from consideration to a decision. One of the most effective and influential types of media in this capacity is video. While TV is the traditional, more obvious, route that advertisers tend to take, there has been a shift to spending ad dollars on programmatic video instead in order to utilize budgets more efficiently. In this case, the KPI for measuring this level of engagement is determined by the completion rate for pre-roll video.

Lastly, the bottom of the funnel drives conversions and business outcomes. After the consumer is brought into the funnel and led through the consideration period, you’re set to re-market to the most qualified opportunities and drive them to convert. The most common KPIs for these initiatives are CPA or ROI – also easily can be measured by placing a pixel. Accordingly, each part of the funnel serves a different purpose and should be measured by the most meaningful KPI. There may be hesitations and obstacles when it comes to shifting to new KPIs, but that doesn’t mean it’s not the right move. In fact, taking on this full-funnel approach will ensure your budgets are spent wisely and effectively.